PSTH: Chapter Fifty-Nine

Let me see here. Right, progress on creating long range teleportation platforms or portal gateways. As with last year’s report, creating something capable of intercity teleportation is far too expensive to justify. We’ve seen another dip in the cost of building intracity platforms, though the price is still far too high to justify building them for transportation. To say nothing of the costs needed for activating the gates, even if they are built. However, there has been some minor progress in building limited-use intracity platforms, nearly a forty percent cost reduction thanks to Doctor Edelbright’s team. If we can continue with this, we might see these limited-use platforms for emergency evacuation within residential buildings within ten years…

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Presenter at the Conference of Transportation, 441 Modern-Era

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Rane did manage to get to the shower first, much to my chagrin, but I eventually got around to showering. It helped even more than the coffee did, though I was mildly annoyed that I’d have to use a still-damp towel to dry after my evening shower. It wasn’t objectively a problem, since I’d dry off fine, but it still annoyed me.

A good, if simple, meal that Rane and I took in the downstairs kitchen helped round me out, and I was feeling back to normal after the excitement of earlier in the day and later in the evening. We talked about some lighter things, and Rane spent a full half-hour complaining about one of her nastier professors who basically refused to give a rubric, making it all but impossible to figure out what he was scoring her on. As the clock neared my appointment with Gawain, I said my goodbyes and headed out to meet him. He was standing in front of the Consortium building, tapping his foot on the ground as I approached. I squinted at him, remembering my promise to Rane. Of course, that got harder when his eyes flicked over to me and he opened his mouth. 

“You’re late.” 

I really, really wanted to snap back that I wasn’t late. According to my augpad, it was four twenty-eight. I choked my words down, though, and opted for something else.

“What makes you say that?” I asked, doing my best to keep my frustration down, and partially succeeding. 

“Because you are?” Gawain asked, his tone suggesting I was stupid for even asking. I closed my eyes and muttered a request to whatever essence heart was near by to give me patience. 

“We agreed to meet at four thirty. It isn’t even four thirty yet. How am I late?” 

“You always show up to a meeting fifteen minutes beforehand,” Gawain said, his tone controlled, like he was explaining something very simple to a small child who didn’t know any better. The condescension felt like someone was dragging a cheese grater against my scalp, but I did my best to ignore that. 

“I was always told that showing up on time, or a few minutes early, was good. It shows you respect their time, and listened to what they said. Show up early, and it makes them feel like you’re expecting them to dance to your tune.” 

Gawain stared at me, his lavender eyes boring through my lemon ones, and practically into my soul. 

“Oh,” he said after several long moments of a very awkward silence. It wasn’t an apology, but I didn’t think I’d be getting one of those, so I accepted the fact that he looked a tiny bit ashamed as good enough. 

“So, did you want to fight now?” I asked, and Gawain nodded in agreement. We pushed through the doors, scanned in at the front desk, then looked through the area for an open ring. I had somewhat expected to be unable to find one, given how packed the place had been in the time leading up to the fight between Finley and Kingfisher, but the area wasn’t even half as packed as it had been the day before. I supposed lots of people had packed up and left. 

As we entered a padded training ring, Gawain tossed his little golden drone into the sky to begin recording, then held out his hand expectantly. I passed over my augpad to him, thankful that he hadn’t just grabbed it from me like he had before. He spent a moment connecting it to the drone, then handed it back. We powered up the protective magic, then stood opposite from one another. I ran my hand along my storage gems, mentally considering which to use, while Gawain sent over the fight request. I accepted, then threw out Scales and Zale. 

To my surprise, he sent out Gabis and Trouble, completely forgoing the use of Gryphon that I’d predicted. As soon as the fight began, Trouble began unleashing his illusions and emotional magic on Zale, working to stop him from casting. Between his gift and the shadows, it was enough that he began to slip on 

The match between Gabis and Scales was less one-sided, however. I had Scales rush forward, as if he was going to attack Trouble, but instead of casting an attack spell, he cast his new Enhance Defense spell. Gabis fired off a spike of ice at him and positioned to get in between the shark-like Primal and the vulnerable Boogeymander. The ice did little, between the Enhance Defense and Scales’ natural resistance, and Gabis’ usual damage reflection ability didn’t go off, since Scales didn’t actually attack him. 

I was one buff ahead, but Trouble was rapidly expanding and unleashing his magic on Scales too. It wasn’t as bad of a debuff as it might have been – Gawain had to thread a needle. After all, Scales’ ability improved his power when he was under duress. Creating too much fear would just make Scales stronger. But if the Boogeymander didn’t push any illusions or fear, then it would be wasting the anima of an area effect on only one Primal. 

It wasn’t enough. Gabis was starting to use a move of his own, likely a defensive boost of his own, but Scales completed his own attack first, unleashing an Aqua Fin. The damage reflection that rushed back at him hurt, but it did the important job of knocking Gabis to the side. The gap allowed Scales to rush the Boogeymander, who immediately unleashed a Telekinetic Pulse, throwing Scales back, right in the direction of Gabis. Gabis fired a crystalline spear attack, only for Scales to leap out of the way. He wasn’t the most nimble of Primals, but he’d been training a lot against the machine with a counter-attack function, and it was clearly paying dividends. He barely managed to form another layer of Enhance Defense as both Gabis’ and Trouble’s spells crashed over him, an ice shard and a blast of telekinetic force sending a few cracks in his pneuma shell, but not breaking it. 

Which was when Zale finally completed his spell. It had taken him even longer than usual, with the additional distractions that were provided by Trouble, but he’d finally managed it. Better yet, Gawain had no way of knowing that he’d finished it, and was now holding onto the Pneuma Bite spell for any moment. 

I had Scales try and rush for Trouble again, and just like before, Gabis intercepted. This time, he used a new spell, one that created a blue shield around him, that I presumed was designed to stop Scales from attacking him with Aqua Fin and just repeating an entire segment of the fight. I mentally cursed. I hadn’t been about to use Aqua Fin, but I did need to get a tooth in on Gabis. At least, as something of a consolation prize, Scales completed a third layer of Boost Defense, right in time for another dual attack. He was down to half his pneuma now, and I was really looking forward to the day where he learned a spell like Healing Mist, in order to repair damage, but I couldn’t think too deeply on that mid-fight. 

Gabis’ blue shield vanished, and Scales locked his jaws around one of the sharp floating quills that surrounded the rare Primal, then spun and thrashed through the air, tossing Gabis in a motion that reminded me of a dog throwing a toy backward, or a crocodile death slam-roll. Scales took another Telekinetic Pulse and was shoved backward, away from Trouble, while Gabis flew through the air. 

And landed squarely in front of Zale’s sharp, bug-dragon-like mouth. Pneuma Bite impacted Gabis before the stunned Cyric could even process what was happening, and though the reflective damage scored cracks in Zale’s pneuma shell, it didn’t do nearly as much as Gawain probably hoped it would. While Gawain’s attention was locked on Gabis, I slashed my hand out, and Scales rushed Trouble. With a pulse of anima, he landed an Aqua Fin on the frail salamander-like Primal, then began to build up for another, even as the telekinetic attacks hammered into him. 

Gabis was firing attacking spells into Zale’s body, and it was hurting. With his gift active, Zale’s pneuma was also less effective. But he’d been working on a spell for quite a while, and with the attacks Trouble had taken, the Boogeymander was having a hard time maintaining the mental assault. He completed a Restore Shell spell, and with a rush, the cracks began to heal. 

Gabis used the moment to turn and try and stop Scales, but it was too late. An Aqua Fin impacted Trouble, shattering his pneuma shell and taking him out of the fight. I took a moment to drink in that victory. Scales had gone so long without a spell of his own element, now that he finally had one, his power and reserves felt practically limitless by comparison. It was almost as dramatic as when Zale’s gift was suppressed. Speaking of… 

I called Scales back, and unleashed Hex onto the field, barely managing to make the switch before a crack of lightning split the air, hammering the cat-like Primal. It was a risky play, and I knew that. Recalling Scales like this would cause him to lose the three layers of defensive magic he’d cast thus far, and I was forcing Hex to take a blow, despite not being the toughest Primal out there. Her pneuma reserves instantly dropped by a full quarter, and she let out an annoyed hiss. 

But within Zale, changes were already taking place as his gift was suppressed by hers. He Light Dashed over to Gabis, then slammed down with a Pneuma Bite. Gabis, having already taken a battering before, had cracks splinter across his pneuma shell, and the reflection of damage was suppressed by Hex. Zale tore through the Cyric, while Hex was dashing around, dodging blasts of flame from Gryphon overhead. She tried to surround him with a cloud of darkness, but he tore through it with his flash of light, then struck her with a blast of fire. She retaliated with Weakening Smog, but her pneuma had taken another hit from the flames. She just needed to hold out until… there! Zale’s impact landed, and Gabis’ shell broke. 

Zale Light Dashed over, then up into the air, taking a blast of flame at point blank. It hurt, but he pushed through it, jaws slamming shut with a Pneuma Bite. Between his immense power, and the fact Gryphon had a Weakening Smog, it hurt, cracks practically exploding across the Wyfynod’s shell. Zale began to fall, of course, but Hex leapt on top of him, then fired a Poison Needle at Gryphon’s wings. Gryphon struck her with a flash of flame, while the pair struck the ground, and she dropped to about a fifth of her total pneuma reserves. 

This would be close If Gryphon took her out, which he might, then Zale was going to be reduced again, and I wasn’t confident Scales and Zale had enough aerial ability to take Grypon out. 

One last attack, then. I threw all of my personal anima into Zale, and he exploded upwards with a Light Dash – and missed. Gryphon managed to bank out of the way at the last second, and though Hex was able to dodge the attack, Zale went wide, crashing against the top of the dome and then falling again. Lightning cracked down, blasting against Hex. As she turned into a swirl of ousia and returned to my storage gem, Scales burst forth, ready to continue the fight. 

It wasn’t enough. The lightning quickly eliminated Scales, who had no aerial attacks, and Zale didn’t have time to shape 

“Good job,” I said, nodding as Hex, Zale, and Scales formed around me, and I began cuddling them, giving them reassurances. “You did well.” 

“Two to one, now,” he said, even as Gryphon, Gabis, and Trouble clambered over him for scritches. “But you nearly had me.” 

“I’ll get you next time.” 

“Sure,” he said, a competitive spark lighting in his eyes. “Let them recover, then train?” 

“You’ve got yourself a deal.”